The foursome recorded around 45 sombre and tormented songs while gaving a number of concerts in the area around Nantes. Later, with the singer Katerine, Dominique Ané recorded a number of songs in a more upbeat and livelier style.
Beginning of a career
At the beginning of the 1990s Dominique Ané recorded songs that were both minimalist and rock in style. He wanted to break with the traditional chanson, which he considered to be more literary than musical[1]. His first CD, released by the Nantes label, Lithium, met with critical acclaim by the alternative magazine, Les Inrockuptibles, and by Bernard Lenoir, the 'John Peel' of France. Furthermore, his song, Le Courage des oiseaux, (the Courage of the Birds), was an underground hit.
From 1992 onwards, he started to produce more and more live shows, either with a backing band or solo. His commercial success grew in 1995 with Le twenty-two bar, a single off the album, La Mémoire Neuve, but this success left a bitter taste in Dominique's mouth because he considered the song to be particularly badly written[1].
In 2000, he composed the score for Antoine Desrosières' black comedy film Banqueroute.
Le Détour and beyond (2002-)
Dominique's discovery of Alain Bashung's dark 2002 album, L'Imprudence shocked him to the point that it put his music into question and he decided to explore different ways of working. He decided to compile what he considered to be the first part of a musical time capsule, a longbox entitled Le Détour. He asked his fans to write about their relationship with his music, and some of their letters were published in the booklet accompanying Le Détour.
For his subsequent album, he wanted to experiment and, consequently, for the first time, he gave control over the album to a third party, the team who produced L'Imprudence. The end result would be Tout sera comme avant (Everything will be like it was before), which was released in 2004. Unfortunately, many fans had difficulty obtaining a copy. At the same time, Dominique gave many live performances variously using a big band, minimalistic backing, or all alone (where he would experiment with oversampling).
In March 2006, L'Horizon came out, a new work that he produced alongside Dominique Brusson, with whom he had made the early album, Remué. It was the first time that Dominique A returned to work with a producer. He was backed by his old collaborators, Sacha Toorop and Olivier Mellano, as well as the musicians with whom he produced Tout sera comme avant. Dominique A had recently quit his record label, Labels, due to his desire for more creative freedom; consequently, it is no surprise that he describes L'Horizon as his most experimental work to date.
Collaboration and influence
Dominique A collaborates regularly with other artists and on other projects. He has been one of the shaping forces of Françoiz Breut's career, writing many of her songs since her début in 1997. He has also composed several songs for Jeanne Balibar's second album, Slalom Dale and wrote Où est la ville ? for Jane Birkin's 2006 album, Fictions. He also sang Veruca Salt et Frank Black in trio with Keren Ann and Vincent Delerm on the latter's second album, Kensington Square.
Dominique A has inspired and influenced many artists. Among them were Yann Tiersen and the Norwegian electro band, Oslo Telescopic, who named one of their albums The Dominique O Project. Lyrically, Dominique's movement away from the constraints of chanson moved many other French-speaking artists, including Miossec, Holden and Arman Méliès.
Pour La Peau
Dominique A Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Comme tu lui as parlé
Et comme elle résistait
Elle voulait se défendre
Et c'était presque beau
De vous voir, presque beau
Ta patience infinie
Ses "non, "oui", "pas ici".
Elle voulait dans ta chambre
Et tout a bien été
Et tout était très tendre ;
Mais après, comme toujours,
Ça t'as rendu tout chose.
Elle s'est lavée vite fait ;
Oh tu savais bien comme c'est mais
Qu'est-ce que tu ne ferais pas pour la peau ?...
Ton sang chauffé d'un coup
Tu le sens cavaler
Te porter n'importe où
Te faire faire un peu tout, sans frein ;
Là, tu es dans un lit
Où ton sang t'a mené
Et la fille est jolie
Et après, vous parlez
Et tu dis "j'ai quelqu'un" ;
Tu dors sous d'autres draps
Depuis longtemps déjà,
C'est pourquoi tu es là
Avec ton sang qui dort
Sous tes mains, sous ta peau ;
Ton sang paisible enfin
Paisible, lui au moins.
Qu'est-ce que tu ne ferais pas pour la peau ?...
The lyrics of Dominique A’s song “Pour la peau” describe a sexual encounter, but from a more introspective point of view. The singer describes his partner’s resistance, and his own patience in waiting for her to feel comfortable, which he finds almost beautiful. The encounter is described as tender, but afterwards, the singer is left feeling uneasy and disoriented. He realizes that he is cheating on someone else, and he focuses on the physical sensations that have altered his sense of self.
The phrase “Qu’est-ce que tu ne ferais pas pour la peau?” can be translated as “What wouldn’t you do for the skin?” This line, repeated throughout the song, reflects the idea that we are ruled by our physical desires, even when we know that they will have consequences. The skin is both a barrier between us and the world, and a source of pleasure and pain. The singer is caught between his desire for physical pleasure and his awareness of the emotional toll it will take.
The song captures the complexity of human sexuality, as well as the tension between the physical and emotional aspects of relationships. The singer is not judged or condemned for his actions, but rather there is a sense of ambiguity and complexity that reflects the reality of life. The song suggests that our desires are not always rational, but they are an inescapable part of who we are.
Line by Line Meaning
Comme tu as su attendre
You patiently waited
Comme tu lui as parlé
You spoke to her
Et comme elle résistait
And she resisted
Elle voulait se défendre
She wanted to defend herself
Et c'était presque beau
And it was almost beautiful
De vous voir, presque beau
To see you, almost beautiful
Ta patience infinie
Your infinite patience
Ses "non, "oui", "pas ici".
Her 'no,' 'yes,' 'not here'
Un jour ça s'est passé
One day it happened
Elle voulait dans ta chambre
She wanted to go to your room
Et tout a bien été
And everything went well
Et tout était très tendre
And everything was very tender
Mais après, comme toujours,
But afterwards, as always,
Ça t'as rendu tout chose.
It made you feel strange
Elle s'est lavée vite fait
She quickly washed
Oh tu savais bien comme c'est mais
Oh, you knew how it was though
Qu'est-ce que tu ne ferais pas pour la peau ?...
What wouldn't you do for the skin?...
Ton sang chauffé d'un coup
Your blood heated suddenly
Tu le sens cavaler
You feel it run wild
Te porter n'importe où
Carry you anywhere
Te faire faire un peu tout, sans frein ;
Make you do a little bit of everything, without restraint;
Là, tu es dans un lit
There, you are in a bed
Où ton sang t'a mené
Where your blood led you
Et la fille est jolie
And the girl is pretty
Et après, vous parlez
And afterwards, you talk
Et tu dis "j'ai quelqu'un"
And you say 'I have someone'
Tu dors sous d'autres draps
You sleep under other sheets
Depuis longtemps déjà,
For a long time already,
C'est pourquoi tu es là
That's why you're here
Avec ton sang qui dort
With your blood that sleeps
Sous tes mains, sous ta peau ;
Under your hands, under your skin;
Ton sang paisible enfin
Your blood finally peaceful
Paisible, lui au moins.
Peaceful, at least.
Qu'est-ce que tu ne ferais pas pour la peau ?...
What wouldn't you do for the skin?...
Contributed by Kaelyn G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@svetasveta2630
Magnifique!
@vonvon289
chanson parfaite,que c'est beau,superbe !!!
@TheRoquevaldez
excelente canciom, nervuda, angustiante, con fuerza. No entiendo como este tipo de musica no se conoce a nivel mundial. Es una lastrima
@alexallegri
Sublime
@raton7236
concert sublime à lille hier!!!!!
@vonvon289
Me voici de retour,cette chanson je l'ai dans la peau......
@zoejoe67
Merci encore.....tu es une bel trip (cop de ND)`
@SparadrapJoey
magnifikkk
@Jeromechassagnard
💎
@CristianAryOrellana
Hay otros Grupos Franceses... Ejemplo... Alcest, tiene un disco Esplendoroso...!